Defining Normal
by Ella-and-Frankie-Inc
Summary: How will Brennan react when she finds out Booth has a date? Updated rating to M for Chapter 5.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Wills and I were in a colloborating kind of mood today...and thought a little bit of B&B fluff was in order! Hope you enjoy...AnaG **

"Booth, where are we going?" She asked, forehead creasing at the unexpected route he was taking.

"Back to the lab. You need to pick up your car, right?"

"But I thought--we always go to the diner after a case." she said, looking confused.

"Not tonight."

"Why?"

"I've got a, you know, a date." He answered without looking in her direction.

"A date?"

"Yes a date. You know, dinner, dancing."

She bit her lip and then smiled, hoping he didn't see the look on her face.

"Oh, well have fun." she said hesitantly. Why was this bothering her so much?

"Yea, I think I will. Charlotte is really nice, we met at a friends party last week."

_Charlotte. What kind of name is Charlotte?_

"She must be a lawyer."

"Assumptions already, Bones? I thought you didn't jump to conclusions?"

"Well, Booth, you have to admit that you display certain...patterns...when it comes to choosing your mating partners."

"Mating partners?" Booth stammered.

"Yes, you have a tendency to.."

"I get it Bones." he replied, holding up his hand. "And for your information Charlotte is not a lawyer, she's a kindergarten teacher."

"A teacher?" she squeaked.

"Yes, she loves kids."

_Of course she does. She probably would make mother of the year._

"Anyway, we got to talking at the party and we seemed to really click, so we are going out tonight."

"Where?" The words escaped her lips before she could tell her brain to shut up. Why was she asking for details of her partner's date? And why did the thought of him being on a date leave her a little nauseous?

"That little Italian place around the corner from my place."

Near his place. Of course. The idea of _Charlotte_ being anywhere near his place made her stomach clench. What was wrong with her? He deserved to be happy. He sounded happy.

"I hope..." She couldn't bring herself to say it and scrambled for something appropriate to take its place. "Charlotte sounds very nice, Booth."

"Yeah, she is. Nice. Nice and normal." Booth said, the last words trailing off as if he were talking to himself.

"Normal." She said, ignoring the sting of his words. "Normal's good."

They were silent for a moment as he navigated the streets of D.C.

"So what are you up to tonight?" he casually asked.

_Supposed to be going to the dinner with you!_ her mind screamed.

"I have work to do. On my book." That was a lie, she finished it a week and a half ago but all of the sudden she felt that if she had said she would be working, it would sound lonely and pathetic.

"Oh yeah, how's that going? Am I in it?" he waggled his eyebrows.

"How many times do I have to tell you, you're not Andy Lister." there was a hard edge to her voice and he seemed a little startled by it.

"Sorry Bones."

"It's okay. I just have a headache. Stress of the case." It was a feeble excuse and she knew it. But Booth didn't seem to notice for once.

_He's probably too busy thinking about her to even notice._

"Well, the case is done, so you can relax. You should go out, have a little fun of your own."

"Work is fun to me, Booth."

"Just saying. All work and no play makes Bones a..." His voice lilting in a teasing tone.

"Am I not normal?" She interrupted.

"Wh-what? Where did that come from?"

"You're insinuating that I'm somehow not normal for wanting to work. I should be used to it, you've done it before."

"What?" he asked as he pulled up to the Jeffersonian. "What do you mean?"

"Nothing." she replied, unbuckling her seatbelt and opening the car door.

"Wait, Bones, we are in the middle of a conversation here."

"It doesn't matter Booth." she said, getting out of the car. "Just...have fun on your date."

She slammed the door shut and stalked off.

He shook his head and went to start the car again, but changed his mind, unbuckling his belt, getting out of the car and going after her.

"Want to tell me what is going on here?" He called out as he hurried to close the distance between them. Abruptly, she turned to face him and he stopped short at the look on her face.

"Temperance?"

"Why wouldn't you answer my question, Booth?" She challenged him.

"Why does it matter? You've never been concerned with 'normal' before."

"Did it ever occur to you...never mind. Go. Just go." She turned ready to walk away again. To run.

"No."

"What?"

"No. You are not normal. Not even close."

His words were like a blow to the solar plexus. But she had asked for the truth and now she had it. Even it hurt like hell to hear him say it.

"You're extraordinary."

"Thanks." she said softly. "I have to go."

"Bones..."

"Please Booth." she said, her back to him. "I just...have to go."

She blinked back the tears and headed inside.

"No." His voice rang out. He took a few steps toward her. "Not until you tell me what's going on." He reached for her arm and turned her to face him, noting the tears in her eyes.

"Temperance.."

"You are going to be late."

"Late?" he questioned, having completely forgotten about his date. He was more concerned with how distraught his partner was. And he didn't even know why.

"For Charlotte."

"Look, Bones, whatever's bothering you..."

"Nothing's is bothering me okay?" she said defensively, her voice rising.

"It doesn't look that way to me." he replied loudly.

"Charlotte's waiting, Booth. Don't be rude. Nice, normal women do not like to be kept waiting."

"Snotty is not going to work this time, Bones. I'm not leaving until you tell me what it is that has your panties in a twist all of the sudden."

"The current condition of my undergarments is none of your business, Booth. Why don't you go see if you can get a peek at Charlotte's?"

"I don't give a rat's furry ass about Charlotte's..."

"Really? You seemed pretty infatuated earlier."

"I'm not...infatuated."

"Then why, Booth?"

"Why...what, Bones? Why don't you quit with the games and ask me whatever it is you want to know!"

"Why are you taking her on a date?"

"What? Seriously Bones, this is what's got you all hot and bothered?"

"I'm not hot and bother..."

"Yes you are. All because you want to know why I'm taking Charlotte out? I know we are partners but we don't have to share everything. I can have my personal life. You certainly do."

"What?"

"Yes you, with your 'biological imperatives' and telling me every time you and Sully had sex. Really, I like to keep stuff like that private."

"That's not why I..."

"Then what is it Bones? Huh? You think it will affect our partnership? Think we have to go see Sweets again or I'm going to shoot a clown? Well I'm glad you are concerned about my well-being but.."

"I want to go out on a date with you!!" she shouted.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks to everyone for reading and for the reviews! And now...on with the fluff! Hope you enjoy...AnaG**

_I want to go out on a date with you! I want to go out on a date with you?_

She had no idea why she had said it. And judging by the stunned expression on his face, Booth hadn't expected to hear it either. But there was no turning back now.

"What?"

"I said that I wanted to go out. With you. On a date."

"I got that part, but..."

"But you don't want to. I get it."

"No. Yes. Damn it, I..." Booth stammered as she silently appraised him.

They were both saved from whatever came next by the bleating sound of a cell phone. On auto-pilot, Booth reached into his pocket, withdrawing the phone. He groaned in dismay when he saw the name registered on the display.

"It's Charlotte. I need to..."

"Yeah, I need to go back to work." she turned and started walking into the building.

"Bones, wait!" Booth sighed and answered his phone.

"Hi Charlotte. Yes. Yes, 8 is fine. I will see you then. Bye."

He hung up the phone and sighed.

There was no way, NO WAY, that his partner of almost four years just asked him out on a date. He was attracted to her, you had to be blind not to be but he never thought they would take the next step.

They were partners, friends, despite the fact that he had numerous sex dreams about her. He looked at his phone again. Charlotte was a nice woman and he did feel a connection there. Part of him wanted to march right in there and kiss her hard on the lips, let his passion for her come out. But the other part of him knew that the ramifications would be too much.

'Yes.' he thought to himself. 'I need to go out with Charlotte.'

Try. He owed her that much. Owed himself the chance to have a little bit of happiness.

xxxxxxxx

Brennan stared at the words on the monitor, the blinking cursor taunting her.

_Kathy realized that she had made a complete ass out of herself and now Andy must think she was insane._

Hours had passed and that was the only thing she had written. The sentence wasn't even grammatically correct. She groaned in frustration and rested her head in her hands. What had she done?

The smell of greasy french fries pulled her from her misery. Confused, she looked up to find a white bag sitting in the center of her desk. And Booth sitting in the chair on the other side.

"Booth! What are you...aren't you supposed to be with Charlotte?"

"Um...well, things didn't exactly go according to plan."

"You mean because of what I said before?"

"Quite the ego you've got there, Bones."

"Hey! That's not fair."

"Relax, okay? I was just...it wasn't you."

"Charlotte? But I thought she was nice. And normal."

"Seems she has this habit. Of correcting everyone. My grammar. Elbows on the table. Wine choice. You can take the woman out of the classroom, but..."

"Sorry Booth." she said sincerely.

"Eh, that's okay." he shrugged. "Listen Bones, about before..."

"Don't worry about it." she said, fussing with papers on her desk. "It was stupid and I..." She stopped talking when she felt his hand over hers.

"I would love to go out on a date with you." He said warmly.

"Really?"

She looked so vulnerable that he just wanted to reach over and hug her. He decided to do something else. Getting out of the chair, he perched himself at the corner of her desk and reached out, tilting her chin with his finger.

"Really." he affirmed, leaning down and pressing a sweet kiss to her lips. It was short and perfect and they found themselves staring at each other, unsure of what to do next.

"So..." he finally said. "Are you going to let me have some of those fries or am I going to have to starve?"

She laughed. "Starve? I thought you went out to dinner?"

"I did. But you try to eat osso bucco while having flashbacks to the third grade, wondering if the teacher was gonna smack your knuckles with a ruler again."

"You know, it's been demonstrated that corporal punishment is an ineffective means of establishing control with pre-adolescents." She said as she went about dividing the fries between two napkins she'd placed on her desk.

"Well, it sure worked on me."

"Somehow, I doubt that." She teased, suddenly feeling more relaxed than she had all night. This felt right. It felt like they were themselves again.

They passed several minutes with easy banter and a minor skirmish over the last of the fries. Before, she knew it, they were standing, Booth waiting as she gathered her things.

"So, Booth. Dinner, tomorrow?" She asked trying to act nonchalant, knowing she was failing miserably.

"Sounds perfect. And wear something nice, okay? No stuff with lab goop all over..."

"I don't..."

"Teasing, Bones."

"Oh, okay. I have another question."

"Another one? Don't you want to save something to talk about tomorrow?"

"It's important."

He raised an eyebrow, silently ceding the floor to her.

"What do I call you?"

"Um, by my name. Unless you want to go with Love God or s..."

"I meant," she interrupted, ignoring the smirk on his face, "Now that we are going on a date, it doesn't seem appropriate to refer to you by your surname, Booth. Do you I call you Seeley?"

He shook his head. "Honestly, Temperance, you can call me whatever you want."

She shivered as he said her name. "But if you are calling me Temperance and I'm calling you Booth, then..."

"I'll probably call you Bones most of the time." he admitted. He reached for her hands, his fingers entwining in hers. "Listen, we are still Booth and Bones. Nothing's going to change that."

"Promise?" she asked.

"Promise."

They headed out of the lab, side by side.

"Listen, could you not mention anything to Angela tommorrow?" she asked.

He raised an eyebrow.

"It's just she will be on my case. Yours too and I'd like to take this slow."

"Slow it is."

"Not slow in terms of sex or anything." she said bluntly. "I'd like to do that as soon as possible."

She walked a few more steps before she realized that he was no longer beside her. Bewildered, she turned to find him standing frozen, mouth hanging open as his face reddened. Feeling bolder, and the slightest bit wicked, she slowly walked back to him, hips swaying as she moved closer.

Reaching him, she slowly smoothed her hand over his chest and looked into his eyes.

"Can you handle that...Love God?" She teased a finger over his lower lip.

"I didn't say that...um, I..."

"Hey, you're the one that said I could call you whatever I wanted, right?"


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Before anything, have to thank you all for reading and for the feedback...truly, can't tell you what it means to hear that you are enjoying the story. Now...time to find out how Brennan and the um, Love God, fare on their first date...hope you enjoy! - AnaG and Willi**

Her eyes flicked from the closet to the telephone and back again. She had fully intended on keeping the news of her impending date from Angela but as she pulled stuff out of her closet she decided that she needed help. Besides, this is what best friends did. Not only that, Angela was the best at picking out just the right outfit to wear for stuff like this. Brennan could dress herself stylishly for work, but Angela had dressed her for pretty much every special occasion since they met.

She picked up the phone and dialled the familar number.

"Angela?" she asked.

"Hey Bren, what's up?" Angela's voice came from the other end.

"I'm...I'm going on a date."

"A date? With who?"

Brennan could hear the surprise in her friends voice. Now came the hard part.

"Well, umm...it's...its with Booth."

She squinted and held the phone away from her ear, waiting for the noise. But it didn't come. Instead she heard nothing.

"Angela? Angela?" she asked.

She was then greeted by a dial tone. Blindly, she pressed the button to end the call. That was the last thing she expected to happen. Did Angela think she had made the wrong decision? Impossible. She stared at the pile of clothes heaped on her bed as she tried to analyze her friend's uncharacteristic behavior. Then her eyes wandered to the clock on the wall and she realized that her time was running out. And she hadn't even done her hair.

She would just have to figure this one out on her own.

xxxxxxx

Standing in front of the mirror, Brennan smoothed the bodice of the dress she had finally chosen after much debate. She tried to be objective, but she honestly had no idea if it was right. Would Booth find it sexy?

She was about to change back into the green silk that she had tried on three outfits ago, when a racket from the hallway interrupted her internal debate. Before she could investigate, Angela had managed to enter her apartment, spare key in one hand, waving a piece of paper with the other. Without taking a breath, her friend immediately began to speak.

"No, no, sweetie. That will just not do. This is Booth, Bren. Booth! No way am I going to let you out in that...that thing. Oh and Booth can take care of this, right? It's his fault anyway" Angela said, shoving the piece of paper into Brennan's hand before heading directly to the closet with a determined look on her face.

Both relieved and speechless at her friend's sudden appearance, Brennan could only shake her head as she looked down on the document in her hand.

"60 in a 45 zone? Really, Angela?"

"Bren, it was an emergency."

"Ange, it's just a date."

"Just a date? Please, this is Booth. The Booth. Your Booth. You and him out on a date together and then maybe some hanky panky afterwards."

"Angela, please."

"Nervous?"

"No I'm..." she took one look at her friend's face and flopped down on the bed. "Maybe." she finally muttered.

"I get that." Angela said, sitting beside her. "I was really nervous about dating Jack. I freaked out, remember? It's because you two are such good friends. Now stop worrying and lets pick you out something hot and sexy to wear." She gave her a hug and stepped back into the closet.

"How about this?" Angela asked, thrusting her hand out of the closet. She was holding a bright red strapless dress that was once worn to a cocktail party several years ago.

"Well..."

"Seriously, it would look hot." Angela said, poking her head out. "Especially with these shoes. What time do you have to go again?"

"Eight."

"Crap, we don't have alot of time. Put the dress on and I will do your hair. He will be here soon and I need to leave before then."

"You don't have to leave Ange."

"Of course I do." she replied. "Everyone knows that the fairy godmother disappears before the girl meets the hot prince."

"Booth isn't a hot pri..."

"Just go with me."

xxxxxxxx

She closed the apartment door quickly. Five minutes to spare. Now if she could just find her damn keys before...

"Angela?"

Startled, she looked up to find Booth standing a few feet down the hallway, a small bouquet of flowers in his left hand. she smiled when she recognized shape of the blooms. Daffodils. Nice touch.

"She, um, didn't change her mind, did she?" Booth asked. "Send you out here to...you know."

"Don't worry. I'm just here for a little...girl talk. She's all yours. And by all yours I mean all..."

"Angela! Thanks, got it. I mean..."

"You two kids have fun now." Angela winked and began to walk toward the elevator.

Once she had passed him, Booth took a deep breath and raised his hand to knock on the door. Before he got the chance, he heard a voice behind him.

"Booth?"

He turned to find Angela staring at him, her expression transformed from playful to serious.

"Don't hurt her."

He smiled and she nodded and left, turning to the door once more. He knocked and waited, though not very long, because soon the door swung open and she was standing there and god, did she look gorgeous.

Booth held out the flowers, gave a little cough and managed to croak out a hello. She smiled and let him in, taking the flowers to the kitchen.

She put the flowers in a vase, admiring them, and then got her purse and made her way out the door with Booth. They had barely spoken two words to each other and somehow this felt completely, utterly awkward.

"So..." Booth said, as they drove to the restaurant. He let his voice trail off when he realized he had no idea what to say. He felt like he was back in high school again.

Brennan meanwhile was struggling with the same thing. Their smooth, witty banter had seemed to be erased completely and she wasn't sure what to do about it. He pulled into the restaurant parking lot and found a spot. As she got out of the car, she found herself dreading to go into the fancy restaurant. It was like someplace Michael would take her, not Booth.

"Wait." she said, gesturing for him to come beside her. "Why is this awkward?'

"Well, umm..." Booth said, flustered.

"I think we are both trying too hard." Brennan noted.

"Oh, well I wanted to take you someplace nice and.."

"I get that Booth." she said, laying her hand on his arm. "And it's sweet but...it's not us."

He let out a sigh. "It really isn't, is it?"

She nodded.

"Plan B. Why don't we go get some takeout from Wong Foos and go to the park?"

She grinned. "That would be nice."

Smiling back at her, he held out his hand and watched as she placed her palm against his. And then, as she threaded her fingers through his, for the first time that night, he knew everything was going to be alright. Better than alright.

They were Booth and Brennan. No matter what.

Just like he'd promised her.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thanks for all of the feedback...so happy to hear that you all are enjoying the story! And now...on to the rest of the first date...and the burning question of the day...will they? won't they? Hmmm...let's just say...hope you enjoy! - AnaG and Wills**

"Angela is going to be so disappointed." Brennan said, looking over to the red dress carefully draped over the back of his sofa, and then down at the t-shirt she was wearing. The block letters spelling out 'ARMY' were faded, and the cotton worn, but she had to admit that she was much more comfortable than she had been in the dress.

"Yeah, I can only imagine." Booth said with a light chuckle. "But when Mother Nature decides it's time to rain...well. Not much we could do about that."

"Nothing has exactly gone according to plan has it?" she asked.

They both surveyed the makings of the makeshift picnic that Booth had arranged on his living room floor. Takeout cartons arranged on the blanket covering the carpet, a couple glasses of wine and a few strategically placed candles.

"But this is nice, isn't it?" he replied, his eyes meeting hers.

"Yes, it is." she said, looking around and smiling. She reached for her wineglass and in doing so her arm brushed against his, causing her to shiver slightly. She tilted her head to look at him, his breath caressing her face and her tongue darted out and licked her lips. Her hand was still reaching for the wineglass and her fingers touched it, causing it to fall over, wine spilling every where.

"Oh god." she said, hastily grabbing the glass. Sorry."

"No, it's okay." He reached to mop up the wine and knocked over a candle, which promptly lit the edge of the blanket on fire.

"Crap." Booth shouted as he grabbed his wineglass and doused the flames. Brennan hastily blew out the rest of the candles in order to avoid another incident.

"Sorry" she repeated, picking up the cartons and moving them out of the way.

"I'm just going to get a cloth." he replied, getting up and making his way to the kitchen. Or attempting to make his way, because he didn't get more than three steps before he slipped on the wine and crashed to the ground.

"Booth! Oh god, I am so..."

"Do not say that you are sorry." He said, teeth gritted.

"Then what can I do?" She asked, kneeling beside him. "Are you in pain?"

"Not really...ow! What are you..."

"Checking you for injuries, Booth." She stated matter-of-factly as her hands began to move over his body.

He started to pull away, not sure that he was exactly prepared for the sensations her touch was causing. But the truth was it felt good. Damn good.

"Um, Temperance?"

"Yeah, Booth?" She asked absently, caught up in her examination.

"There is _one_ thing that you could do for me?"

"What? Heating pad? Aspirin?"

His hand encircled her wrist, bring her hand to a halt against his chest.

"Kiss it and make it better?"

A surge of arousal swept through her body unexpectedly as she leaned down and placed a soft kiss on his lips. The kiss grew hungry as his hands came around her waist and his tongue entered her mouth. There were sparks and it wasn't from the recent fire. He rolled her over so he was on top, not caring about the wine that had soaked a part of his pants. He did care however at the rain of DVD's and books that came showering down as they bumped his bookcase hard.

"Ow!" he growled as a book hit him square in the back of the head and tumbled beside him. He picked it up and looked at it. It was a copy of her latest book. Of course.

She giggled and squirmed underneath him, which definately wasn't helping his situation.

"What do you say we take this to the bedroom?" she asked.

He nodded. "At least there, disaster won't strike." he muttered. At least he hoped.

He slid off her and got up, reaching for her hand and helping her up as well. He heard her giggle and lifted an eyebrow in response.

She just began to chuckle harder and pointed to his butt.

He twisted around and groaned. Apparently, not only did he sit in wine, he ended up sitting in some Pad Thai too. Which was now unceremoniously clinging to his ass.

"Oh, god." He groaned. "I give up."

"Give up?" She asked, incredulous. She hadn't waited this long, gotten this close, to be done in by a puddle of merlot and a pile of noodles. "Booth, we do _not_ give up."

"But...you have to admit...this isn't exactly the most romantic..."

"Romantic? Booth I don't need..."

"Maybe I do!" He said, not realizing how true the statement was until he heard the words coming out of his mouth. "Look. This is our first date and maybe...well maybe this is a sign we should slow things down a little..."

"Slow? Booth, we have been dancing around this for three years. I think that qualifies as slow. Glacial, in fact."

He studied her, saw the heat in her eyes, the unmistakable response all too visible through the cotton of the borrowed t-shirt.

"Well, when you put it that way..." He said, reaching for her hand, drawing her closer.

"I do..." The rest of her sentence, and pretty much all conscious thought, disappeared as his mouth settled on hers. As the kiss deepened, her hands moved over the hard planes of his chest, her arms sliding around his back. Temptation trumped whatever slivers of inhibition remained, and her hands descended lower.

She broke away from him, suddenly unable to maintain the kiss as a giggle escaped.

"What now?" He asked impatiently, his breath ragged.

She lifted her hand, a single noodle and a trace of sticky sauce clinging to it, transferred there during her...exploration.

"See!" He said, mortified. "I told you it was a sign. This is..."

"You're right. A sign."

"Wh-what?" He said, now suddenly dissappionted to hear her agreeing with him. Too bewildered by his own reaction, in fact, that he missed the impish tone in her voice.

"Yes, Booth. Perhaps a sign that we should get you out of these clothes?"

.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Here we go! The continuation of Booth and Brennan's date night as they make their way to the bedroom. Hopefully they will be able to avoid any further...mishaps. We updated the rating to M, just in case they succeed! Hope you enjoy! AnaG and Willgirl**

His mouth gaped open as she slunk towards him, reaching for the hem of his shirt. She grabbed it and pulled the shirt off him in one fell swoop before he could even respond. He let out a little unmanly squeak as her lips hit his chest.

He found himself being pushed back towards the bedroom before he could even wrap his arms around her. His brain was foggy, perhaps because her tongue was now in his mouth and he could do nothing but respond. He stopped her short and spun her around, pushing her towards the bed as his hands trailed underneath her shirt. He saw her shiver at his touch and it spurred him on more and soon the shirt was on the floor and he was face to face with the most gorgeous breasts ever, only restrained by a red lacy bra that he would soon be getting rid of.

Or so he thought. As he reached around to undo the clasp, his hands fumbled and he couldn't get it undone. Heck, he couldn't even find the clasp. Seconds ticked by and he felt his cheeks go red and was reminded of the time in tenth grade when he failed to impress Melissa Adams with his bra removal skills.

"Umm...Booth?" she said, as he awkwardly backed away from her. She pointed down and raised her eyebrow. Booth's eyes followed her finger and he groaned inwardly.

The clasp was in the front.

But whatever mortification he may have felt disappeared as she deftly unfastened the clasp, the red lace falling away slowly to reveal curves of pale skin and delicate dusky rose of her nipples hardening as the met the cool air. At that point, as fantasy and daydreams were surpassed by the vision in front of him, his only thought was...lost. He couldn't think, could only move closer, pressing his lips against the column of her throat, entangling his fingers in her hair.

He heard a breathy moan as he slowly moved his hands over the curve of her shoulder, down to her waist, and then finally, finally to trace the curve of her breast, cupping the soft flesh against his palm. Feeling, hearing her response, only made him want more. He replaced his hand with his mouth, his lips gently suckling, teasing...and he found himself listening for her, wanting to know that she felt as turned on as he did. But when her response came, he froze. Instead of gasps of pleasure, he heard...a giggle.

Backing away in disbelief, he stared at her. Hair mussed, face rosy with what he'd thought had been passion, a wicked glint in her eye, she was the picture of arousal.

Until she giggled...no laughed, again.

"S-sorry, Booth." She said, stuttering over her sudden mirth.

He still didn't know what to say, to do. This wasn't exactly a typical reaction. Well, maybe once, he thought, the image of Melissa Adams flashing in his brain again. But this, this was...

"I'm sorry, Booth, It's just that..."

She burst into giggles again and sat down on the bed. He looked at her bewilderingly which only caused her to laugh even harder, her body shaking as tears rolled down her face.

Booth was utterly confused. Here he was half naked, ready to make love and she was giggling at him. Actually it wasn't giggling anymore, It had erupted into much more than that. Everytime she tried to speak, she burst into laughter again, her hands clutching the bedspread as she tried to keep herself upright.

He gave a slight smile which turned into a grin and soon he was laughing along, even though he had no idea what the joke was.

"Think it's funny, do ya?" he asked.

She nodded, her body still shaking with laughter and he decided it was time for desperate measures. In one fell swoop, he scooped her off the edge of the bed and threw her back down on it, and immediately covered her body with his own, his lips capturing hers in a deep and sensual kiss. He moved his hand down her stomach and slipped in underneath his favourite pair of grey sweatpants that she had borrowed and rubbed her clit softly.

Her body went slack and her head fell back as he continued his torture. He smiled to himself. He knew that would shut her up. He relentlessly stroked her as their tongues continued to tangle until his lips left hers and trailed down her body, stopping at her breasts again. He hoped this time he wouldn't get the same reaction.

When her fingers tangled in his hair, urging him onward...or rather, downward, he thought he was in the clear. Testing the waters, he feathered a breath over her nipple, pleased with when she responded with a faint whimper. So far, so good. Feeling bolder, he traced his tongue over the pebbled tip, teased her with his lips.

And was rewarded with a muffled giggle.

Groaning in frustration, he rolled over onto his back and glared at the ceiling.

"Wanna tell me what's going on here?" He asked.

"Umm..."

"So...are you ticklish or something?"

"No. Not at all.'

"Okay, then. Am I...am I doing something well, wrong?"

"Oh, god no."

"Well, you're gonna have to help me out here. Unless you don't want to..."

Pressing her body against his, she silenced him with a lingering kiss, a kiss full of promises. When she finally leaned away from him, he didn't find a single trace of amusement on her face.

"Booth, I know I was the one that initiated this..."

"Why do I sense a big 'however' heading my way?"

"No. Not however. But..."

He groaned in disbelief. All he wanted to do was bury himself inside of her and she wanted to argue over semantics. And he still didn't have a clue as to why she had...

"...I just need a minute. To adjust. One minute, you are my partner. My friend. And the next, you're kissing my nipples. A complete shift in paradigm and I..."

"Found it hilarious?"

"A completely involuntary reaction."

"Hmmpff."

"Don't pout, Booth." She said, leaning closer, her lips brushing the curve of his ear. "I promise to make it up to you."

She moved off the bed and for a moment his heart sank, but then he saw her push the sweatpants off her hips, revealing the rest of her gorgeous body. And then, quick as a flash, she was straddling him again, rolling her hips against his prominent erection as she placed hot, open mouthed kissed on his chest. He groaned at the sudden contact and tried not to buck his hips.

_'Slow it down, Seeley'. _

Unfortunately his partner wasn't interested in helping him with the slow down plan as she slunk down his body, pressing wet kisses everywhere. She tugged at his sweatpants and pulled them off, tossing them to the floor. If he was hard before, it was nothing compared to now as his partner looked at him as if she wanted to devour him. All of the sudden, he realized what she meant about the paradigm shift. A date was one thing. This was going to change everything.

But before he could ponder it further, she took him into her mouth and a groan slipped from his lips. Clearly, devour was the right word after all.

"Bones.." he pleaded.

She ignored him as she continued to torture him further, taking him in deep and swirling her tongue in a way that made him on the edge of explosion.

"Bones". he said, again. "TEMPERANCE!"

She looked up with curiosity.

"It's too much, I mean...I want to be inside you."

She nodded and worked her way up his body, placing a soft kiss on his lips.

"My turn". he grinned wickedly, as he rolled them over so he could be on top. Unfortunately, in his desire, he miscalculated the edge of the bed and they were sent crashing to the floor.

They both lay there on there in a tangle of bare limbs and sheets, staring at each other, both too stunned to speak. She shook her head once, and he saw the beginning of a smile on her lips.

"Is this what people mean when they say 'the earth moved'?" She asked wryly.

He started to laugh, wanted to laugh, but the hilarity of the moment was lost in the sudden awareness of the heat of her bare skin against his, the brush of her hip against his erection as she shifted her body. It seemed that no matter what the universe was going to throw at them tonight, they always came back to this.

He watched her eyes grow dark with passion, as her head lowered, her lips coming to rest against his. His arms tightened around her, drawing her closer as the kiss deepened. Without breaking the contact, he gently guided her until she rested beneath him.

The pace of her breathing quickened, and through the haze of desire he could feel the tremble of her muscles, the slide of her leg against his. God, he wanted her. So close, so close. Except...

"Wait." He whispered, his breath ragged.

"What? No. " She stared at him as if he had suddenly grown a second head. "Please, Booth. Not now."

"I'm not...Protection. I need to make sure that..." He stopped talking as he reached towards the drawer of the nearby nightstand.

Relieved beyond measure, she began to pepper kisses along his chest as he blindly searched for the foil packets. She was so caught up in her exploration that she didn't notice that the search had grown slightly frantic.

"No. No. No. I don't believe this..." His words trailed into silence as he broke away from her, levering himself up to more thoroughly search the drawer.

"Wh-what is it?" She asked

He sat back on the floor, unable to meet her eyes as he mumbled a response.

"Booth?" She asked with concern.

"I don't have any...you know."

"Condoms?"

"Well, yeah. I'm so sorry, Temperance. I can't believe..." He slowly made himself look at her, and instead of frustration or annoyance, was surprised to find an impish look on her face.

"Don't worry, Booth." She said, pressing a quick kiss to his forehead as she stood.

"Wait, there's other things...I mean...oh, hell. You don't have to leave."

He watched in dismay as she began to step away, fulling expecting her to begin gathering her clothes. The entire evening had been a disaster. This was a fitting ending he thought.

But instead of putting on her clothes and high-tailing it out of the disaster zone, she remained completely nude, boldly walking back into the living room without a second glance. Caught between the reignition of his desire and confusion, he listened to the rustling sounds coming from the next room.

She returned quickly, leaning against the doorjamb with both arms hidden behind her back. And then, with a teasing grin, she revealed the single foil square that she'd concealed in one hand.

"Where did you..."

"Well, Booth. I came...prepared." She said moving towards him.

"Really?" He asked, standing to join her at the edge of the bed.

"Really. Now, do you have any more questions are we finally going to..."

"No." It was the last thing he said as he dragged her down on the bed with him. Only to stop as the stack of silver squares she had been holding in her other hand spilled across the sheet. He began to count them, and then looked back at her, one eyebrow raised.

"Like I said, Booth. I came prepared."

He swept them all off the bed and then watched as she took the condom out of the wrapper. He watched her move back and then suddenly, dear god, she was putting the condom on him with her mouth. She straddled him again and as she leaned down and pressed a kiss to his lips, she shifted and sank down, elicting a groan from both of them.

She began to move and it felt like pure heaven. He reached for her hips to guide her and soon they were entrenched in a steady rhythm. He flipped her over and drove into her, causing her to cry out.

"Please Seeley".

The sound of his name on her lips drove him crazy and he pounded into her, their cries mingling together.

"So good". he panted.

"God yes." she replied, trying to pull him even closer. Damn the law of physics, he was right. They were so damn close. "Oh yes..., fuck Booth..., right there."

Her words spurred him on and he found himself closer and closer to the edge as he pistoned in and out of her. He looked down at her, her body moving with his, her skin glistening, her eyes squeezed tight and he thought he never saw anything more beautiful.

"Temperance". he pleaded. "Open your eyes".

She did and he felt himself unable to hold back any longer as his orgasm ripped through him, lighting his whole body on fire.

And even then, even as he pulsed inside of her and the electricity contracting every fiber of his body, he never took his eyes from hers. It was a memory he would take with him forever, the clear blue of her eyes darkening, the trembling and shaking of her muscles, the short breathy scream as she joined him. This, he knew as they grew still, as he rested his forehead against hers and tried to breathe, this he would never forget.

He slowly slid away from her, settling onto the mattress before immediately drawing her back to him, not wanting to break the contact even for the briefest of moments. He smiled as she rested her head on his chest, nestling into the curve of his shoulder as he lightly traced his fingers over her skin.

"Perfect."

He felt the whisper of her words against his skin as spoke, felt her press her lips against his neck and closed his eyes. Despite every mishap, despite the fact that they had flirted with disaster at every turn, she was right. They might never make it to 'normal'.

But this, this was perfect.


	6. Epilogue

**A/N: One last posting for this story, an epilogue to the big date night. And on a personal note, this has been an absolutely fabulous writing experience and the reviews and feedback from everyone have made it all the sweeter. Thank you all so much. And now...hope you enjoy! - AnaG and Willgirl**

She snuggled down into the sheets, keeping her eyes firmly closed, determined to make the peace of this moment last even longer. But her body seemed just as determined to respond to the hand curving around her waist, to the lips feathering kisses along her neck.

Reluctantly she opened her eyes to the day, and was instantly lost in the deep brown of the eyes staring intently at her. He'd been waiting for that, to see her respond.

"Booth..." She barely had time to say his name before his mouth descended on hers, the heat of the kiss sparking something deep within her. Before she was aware of what she was doing, her hands were entwined in his hair, urging him to deepen the kiss.

She wanted to protest when he broke away, and when he flashed that smile of his her way, the flutter of desire only intensified.

"Morning, babe."

"Don't. Call. Me..." The rest of the admonishment was lost as his lips returned to her, this time tracing a wavering line along her neck. She willingly gave up the rest of the argument as his mouth began to move lower. She arched against him, wanting more.

And then the very, very small part of her brain that was still clinging to rationality began to intrude. There was something, something that she was supposed to...

She sat up suddenly, dislodging him unceremoniously as she remembered.

"Ow, Bones, that was..."

"Booth. We can't..."

"Sure we can." He murmured as he leaned in towards her.

"No. No we..." She said, her breath quickening.

"It'll only take a few minutes." He said, before reaching for her.

She closed her eyes as the sensation returned, allowed a moment of temptation before pushing his wandering hands away. Once they got started, she knew it would be much longer than a few minutes. Last night had proven that much.

"Booth, we can't. We are going to be late."

"Ah, hell." He gave up, sliding from the bed. And as she watched him walk away from her, she sighed heavily, thinking of what might have been if there were only more time.

She watched as Booth headed into the shower and then she threw on a t-shirt and made her way to the kitchen to make some coffee. That should wake them both up. She knew they had a long day ahead of them and if Angela had her way, she'd want to know everything. Her best friend was certainly inquistive. She cleaned up the mess in the living room and then made her way back to the bedroom to get dressed. Hearing Booth singing loudly in the shower made her smile. Last night certainly was special.

15 minutes later, they were ready to go, heading out to meet Angela and Hodgins. When Angela was helping her dress the night before, she had cajoled her into having a BBQ at Hodgin's place the next day. She had to agree, so here they were, on their way over, although both of them would have preferred a little more sleep.

She glanced out the window of the SUV and smiled at the warm sun on her face. It was a perfect day for a BBQ, no doubt about it.

"Bones?"

She turned to look at her partner.

"Last night was great."

Smiling, she nodded her head. "It really was, wasn't it?"

"Despite a few mishaps." he replied, grinning.

The drove along the streets of DC in silence, both lost in their thoughts. Soon they were at Hodgin's place and made their way to the backyard, where Hodgin's was firing up the grill.

"Need help with that?" Booth asked, moving over to the barbeque. "I'm an expert barbequer, you know."

"We know". Angela and Hodgins chorused.

Brennan just laughed and took a seat next to Angela.

"Give me details." Angela said urgently.

"It was great." Brennan replied.

Angela rolled her eyes.

"It was really great".

Angela gave an exasperated sigh.

"Perfect, actually. Well, except for the fire."

"Fire?" Angela said, her rising voice drawing the attention of the men.

"Shhh, Ange! And it was a small one." She said defensively.

"You know, you two should not be allowed within 10 yards of a candle."

"But it was our anniversary. We wanted it to be special. Romantic."

"Five years. Hard to believe isn't it?" Angela said, her thirst for details forgotten.

"Yeah." Brennan said quietly, thinking of how much her life had changed since that day so many years ago. The day she had blurted out to Booth that she wanted to date him. And now, now they were...

The sound of laughter interrupted her musings, and she looked up to see the four children running pell-mell from the other side of the lawn, heading in their direction. And her eyes went quickly to the fifth, taller and quieter, slowly following behind the others.

"Thanks, Ange. For keeping Jamie and Hannah last night."

"Anytime, Bren. They were great fun for the girls. Though Hannah still seems a little..."

"I know. But she's adjusting. She's only been with us a few weeks now. She just needs..."

Her words trailed away as the children reached the shaded area and gathered around. The three little girls so clearly defined by the features of her two dearest friends.

Then there was Jamie, the little boy climing into her lap talking a mile a minute about his adventures with his friends. And Hannah, standing there on the fringes, wanting to be acknowledged and hoping the blend into the background all at the same time. They were hers. Hers and Booth's. For as long as they could give them a home, give them a measure of peace and stability.

"Tempe! Look'it. I found a hum-rus." Jamie said, withdrawing what appeared to be a chicken bone from his pocket as if it were a treasure.

She smiled, looking down at her foster son, delighted with how quickly he had become enamored with bones in the six months he'd been with them. And then her eyes flickered over to Hannah, and felt her chest constrict at the hesitant smile on the girl's face.

She gestured at Hannah and patted the ground beside her. Hannah nodded and sat down beside her. "Well, this isn't a humerus from a person, but that's a very good guess, Jaime. What else did you do?" she directed her question to Hannah.

"We...we went for a walk." she said shyly.

"And we picked flowers." Jaime piped up.

"Where are they?" she asked.

"I gave 'em to Booth so that he could give 'em to you, cuz it was your annie-versery last night and Jack said he didn't have a present."

Sure enough, she looked up and there was Booth, talking with Hodgins, a cluster of wildflowers in his hand.

"Thank you very much." she said, smiling at the two of them. "Are you hungry?"

They both nodded.

"Okay, let's go see if there's some food."

They got up and headed over to the barbeque. "How goes the cooking?" she asked.

"Almost done". Hodgins replied. "The kids food is ready." At his words, the kids made their way towards Angela and Booth grabbed her hand and tugged her in the other direction.

"These are for you". Booth said, presenting them to her with a flourish as they strolled along the grass.

She laughed. "Right. Flowers that your son picked out for you." She clasped her hand over her mouth when she realized what she said.

Booth smiled and leaned over, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "I think we should adopt them. Both of them." He moved his lips to her ear and whispered "Think about it".

And then he left her standing there in shock as he made his way over to everyone else.

An hour later, she found herself still searching through the possiblities in his words. Tucked away in a corner, she studied the others, hoping her mind would find the answer her heart so desperately wanted. She didn't notice Angela beside her until her friend spoke.

"You should, you know."

"What?" Brennan turned to Angela, her eyes wide. "Wait...how did you know?"

"Please. I've been watching this unfold for years. I'm the resident expert on Booth-Brennan behavior patterns."

"There's no such..."

"Bren. Stop. Now, right now, you have everything you've ever wanted. Accept it and be happy."

"But, Ange, do you think--do you really think that with what we do, who we are, that we can give them a normal life."

Angela shook her head as she hugged her friend. As she stepped away, she offered one last piece of advice.

"Happiness. Love. Family. Those are the things that matter, sweetie. As for normal, well normal is all in how you define it."

Brennan opened her mouth to argue that there was really only one definition for normal, but the thought vanished as she noticed the scene playing out behind her friend.

Booth, holding a sleeping Jamie against his chest. Hannah sitting on the ground in front of him, her expressions changing rapidly as she entertained three small girls with a story. In that moment, she knew Angela was right. And with a smile on her face she made her way back to her perfectly imperfect family.


End file.
